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Working with Subdivision Surfaces in Autodesk Maya

When we model in Maya we typically add more detail to make it look smoother (Using ‘Mesh’ > ‘Smooth’). But sometimes you may want to add detail and keep your models light (and not dramatically increasing the poly count)

  • To use:
    – Select the model
    – Press 2 to see both the default model outline and the smooth model (Caged)
    – Press 3 to just see the smooth model
    – Pressing 1 will show you the original model
  • You can apply this to specific objects, most renderers support this (The Maya software renderer does not though)
  • If you have an object with a low division that looks wrong, try to add more details using edge loops at this may solve the issue (‘Mesh Tools’ > ‘Insert Edge Loop’ OR ‘Offset Edge Loop’)

    – An example would be creating a square or rectange frame, if you hit 2 you will see that the model becomes a circle shape in the center of the cage.
    – You can fix this by adding edge loops to the corners of the cage
Published inMayaModeling